My main goal of creating desserts is that everything we eat should be able to offer us some sort of nutrition. The fact of the matter is, most desserts and sweets are filled with empty calories. That’s not what I want in my life. As I began my weight-loss journey, I had to give up a lot of things. That included ice-cream, my beloved gummy worms, cakes, cookies, etc. All because I needed as much vitamins and healthful nutrients in every calorie that I consumed. The healthy components of foods I began to create power me through my workouts, help me sleep, boost my metabolism, and help my muscles recover.
I realized in my later stages of progression that I missed the sweeter things. I wanted to try and make everything by myself to ensure myself that I could have my cake and eat it to. How could I do this though? The deal I made with myself was that whatever I ate had to give me some great nutritional value in return. Even if it had sugar. I mean there are natural sweeteners like maple syrup and honey and even less refined sugar. So I determined that I would allow these in my life as long as there was a great enough good in what I was eating. So far, it’s working well.
I started making all these desserts and me, a devout chocolate lover, needed some healthy chocolate, rich ice-cream. I never liked how traditional ice cream made my throat feel terrible from the high amounts of dairy fat and the added cholesterol from eggs is not something I dreamed about as I sought for a fitter body. This created a rich, chocolate, vegan dessert I sometimes would eat multiple times a week (guilty as charged) I came up with this recipe for FrooMoo out of necessity and I wanted to share. So, here are the health benefits I was able to achieve in this recipe:
It’s chock full of Manganese. One serving of 107 g has 20% of your daily recommended amount of manganese based on a 2000 calorie diet. “What’s manganese going to do”, you ask? According to the University of Maryland’s medical center, “Manganese helps the body form connective tissue, bones, blood clotting factors, and sex hormones. It also plays a role in fat and carbohydrate metabolism, calcium absorption, and blood sugar regulation. Manganese is also necessary for normal brain and nerve function.”
That same serving size offers 20% of your daily copper intake recommended by the FDA. “Copper plays a beneficial role in immune function because you need copper for healthy white blood cells -- the cell type tasked with seeking out, identifying and destroying pathogens. Low copper levels lower your white blood count, leaving you vulnerable to infection.”
Throw in 15% of your necessary magnesium from that serving. “Magnesium is one of the most important minerals in the body. It is involved in more than 300 metabolic reactions, including the production of protein, proper muscle and nerve function, as well as the regulation of blood sugar and blood pressure.” Also these are all from plant benefits. They say, “It is recommended to get your magnesium from food rather than from supplements, as high doses of supplemental magnesium have been known to cause digestive issues such as nausea, abdominal cramping and diarrhea.”
FIBER! There is 28% of your needed dietary fiber in 1 serving! Fiber is indigestible plant matter that can contribute to weight loss, reduce blood sugar spikes and is strongly linked to a lower risk of many diseases says “The Journal of Nutrtion”.
Let’s take a moment to point out the elephant in the room. It’s got some fat in it. Not just any fat though. These are good fats. This fat is oleic acid. is a monounsaturated fatty acid that is also the major component in olive oil and believed to be responsible for some of its beneficial effects. Oleic acid has been linked to reduced inflammation and been shown to have beneficial effects on genes linked to cancer.
The major component of this Chocolate Cake Batter FrooMoohas been shown to Reduce total cholesterol levels significantly.
Reduce blood triglycerides by up to 20%.
Lower LDL cholesterol by up to 22%.
Increase HDL (the “good”) cholesterol by up to 11%.
If that’s not enough to convince you, I’m not sure what to tell you. Sure there’s some sugar but let’s not forget you’re eating a treat for yourself. Celebrate a new relationship, watch a good movie, or just calm that craving in your head for something delicious and decadent without the guilt. Without sugar even I can admit it would be gross. You don’t have to call it healthy if you don’t want because it’s totally healthful!
Check out this review:
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qxt3Ju2IqU]
Extra Data @ livestrong.com
authoritynutrition.com
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1308699